14. Happy Fourth of July!!!

       Many thanks to Carla Olszewski Cook who brought us this terrific photograph of the Fourth of July, 1945, taken in the Chambersburg section of Trenton. Elizabeth and Nancy Morzillo and their friends show off their babydoll carriages decorated with red, white, and blue crepe paper for the holiday. They’re gathered in front of the old Liberty Theater building on Cummings Avenue and West Street. The theater operated briefly as one of Trenton’s early “moving picture” venues in the early 1900s (listed in Trenton’s 1917 City Directory.) The structure, which still stands is used today as a warehouse (by Landolfi’s?) on Cummings Avenue.

[UPDATE: Nancy Morzillo Paulus, Carla's aunt, shares her memories of this location:

"When we lived at 325 Cummings Ave. (approx. 1939--1949), our home faced the side of the then-abandoned large building which previously had been "The Old Liberty," a theatre.   I think it is still there used as a warehouse for Italian frozen foods? This triangularly-shaped piece of real estate divides West Street from Cummings Ave., with – what in a child's eye – was fronted with a large side-walked area that was great for roller skating, bicycling and parades, as you see in the picture on the fourth of July........it was a fun spot.......

"I loved climbing up the boarded windows and looking at the cobwebbed interior of abandoned stage, seats and old draperies. Outside rear was the high-fenced forgotten parking lot. I have no idea of its life, its placement just seems odd, there on the border of Chambersburg, a then mostly residential neighborhood. Maybe some Italian city planner envisioned the spot as a little city/suburbia town with Hamilton Township so close by at Liberty St. and Chambers St...(there's that name Liberty, so maybe it was on the planning board......cruise by and check out its existence.....now I'm curious. Love, Aunt Nancy  Have fun.."

 

     
       This charming photo of a family gathering on the Fourth of July, 1924, comes from the collection of the Historical Society of Princeton, celebrating its 50th Anniversary this year! This image, and many others from the HSP can also be found on their FaceBook page. Remember to "like" them!

       And, finally, thanks once again to our friend Tom Glover who compiled and posted these Trenton articles and ads from July 3, 4, and 5, 1904 for this fun fireworks "blow by blow." Though we don't see free firecrackers given away with our coffee purchases anymore, the cautionary tales on July 4 and 5 continue to resonate today. Hope everyone in the Capitol County of Mercer and beyond had a safe and happy 4th!

6. The Gift of “Amateur” Historians - and Strawberry Hill



Image courtesy of Tom Glover

Admit it: there’s an astonishing army of curious, creative, investigative, and above all, generous history lovers out there who are researching, curating, and sharing a wealth of information out there. Mercer175 will be sharing the discoveries and research of many of those “amateur” (in the TRUE sense of the word: amateur = “lover of”) regional historians as the year goes on.

One of the best known in this area has to be Tom Glover, well-known columnist, Hamilton township (and environs!) historian, prolific blogger and a member of the Mercer175. Tom has thousands of regular fans who faithfully check out his Hamilton Scrapbook blog where he posts historic photos, old newspaper articles, ads and other fascinating tidbits related to Mercer County history – including this great map of “Strawberry Hill” – the Kuser family estate on top of Baldpate Mountain in Hopewell Township. Although the map isn’t dated, it has a lot of fascinating “clues” – including the location of Charles Lindbergh’s home. The Lindberghs escaped to England by 1936 following the kidnapping and death of their oldest child, and the sensational trial that followed. But that’s for another post!

For more information about “Strawberry Hill”, you can start with the articles in The Furrow (the newsletter by the Friends of Howell Living History Farm), and the Baldpate Mountain page on the new Mercer County Parks Commission website.  There’s also an interesting “outsider’s” write up on the park and the surrounding area on the NJ Skylands website.